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The Co-op is to switch all of its own-brand still, sparkling and flavoured water to 50pc recycled plastic bottles, in a bid to cut waste.

Plastic water bottle floating in the Pacific OceanCredit:
UIG/Getty

The new bottles will have a cloudier and greyer appearance than those that do not contain recycled plastic, the supermarket said.

However, the new hue would be a "badge of honour" for the company, although it admitted the move could put shoppers' environmentally conscious credentials to the test.

Co-op Food chief executive Jo Whitfield said: "Our customers expect us to respond to this challenge and help them make more ethical choices, and we're dedicated to doing just that.

"Making these changes will also create new uses for recycled materials which in turn gives our customers greater confidence in recycling."

Environment Secretary Michael GoveCredit:
Aaron Chown/PA

The new bottles, which are 100pc recyclable and sourced in the UK, will be rolled out to all stores later this year, and will save up to 350 tonnes of plastic annually, a Co-op spokesman said.

The supermarket has also plans to rid its aisles of black and dark coloured plastic by 2020, on the grounds that it is harder for sorting machines to detect due to its pigment, and contaminates the recycling stream, reducing the usefulness and value of the recovered material.

Iain Ferguson, Co-op environment manager, said: "Suppliers are working hard to make the bottle clearer - and they already have.

"In the meantime, our bottles will wear this greyish colour which I see as a badge of honour - we are part of the market for recycled products and are proud of that."

Plastic bottle recycling in NorwayCredit:
Infinitum

Earth’s oceans are currently home to more than 150 million tonnes of plastic, while more than 100,000 sea mammals and a million birds die from eating or becoming tangled in plastic waste annually.

The Co-op’s announcement follows news that Environment Secretary Michael is considering a range of proposals to tackle plastic waste, including introducing charges on bottles that could then be reclaimed at “reverse vending machines”, in return for a small payment.

Plastics and other detritus line the shore of the Thames Estuary Credit:
Dan Kitwood/Getty

Mr Gove said: “We can be in no doubt that plastic is wreaking havoc on our marine environment – killing dolphins, choking turtles and degrading our most precious habitats.

“It is absolutely vital we act now to tackle this threat and curb the millions of plastic bottles a day that go unrecycled.”

The Co-op said it fully supported Government plans announced this week for a deposit return scheme to cut plastic bottle waste.

However Sian Sutherland, co-founder of campaign group A Plastic Planet told The Telegraph: "No matter how many times a plastic bottle is re-used or recycled it will almost always end up in the environment sooner or later. Instead we have to turn off the plastic tap. Where is the logic in packaging something as fleeting as water in something as indestructible as plastic?”